District Collector Prashant J. Patil on Thursday said that the strategy to fight COVID in Nalgonda would be specific, aimed at localised areas from where positive cases were being reported.
“The plan will be to treat areas from where they are arising, while also defining that area as a containment zone. Places reporting more cases will be treated as hotspots,” he said.
Mr. Patil was discussing the strategy with officials from the District Medical & Health Office, the District Hospital and representatives from the State medical and infrastructure development corporation.
It was decided that a dedicated medical team will be formed, one each for the 564 gram panchayats, which will comprise a panchayat secretary, Anganwadi teacher, gram sarpanch, an Accredited Social Health Activist worker and an auxiliary nurse midwife.
In the seven urban local bodies, Nalgonda’s 48 wards will also get one team each, and in Miryalaguda, Devarakonda, Halia, Nandikonda, Chandur and Chityla, each team will take care of two wards. Officials said teams will conduct door-to-door survey starting from Friday, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., covering up to 100 houses per day. The team will be equipped with thermal scanners and oximeters to evaluate health issues such as influenza-like illnesses, fever and breathing problems.
“Suspects will be given home isolation kits, and Rapid Antigen Tests will be conducted then and there. To protect families from being infected, COVID patients will be treated at government buildings or hostels in the locality,” he said.
“Critical patients will be shifted to intensive care units at area hospitals and oxygen will be provided under the supervision of duty doctors,” he added.